Is it better to buy a house or a flat?

Thinking about buying your first or second property, but unsure whether a house or a flat is better? You’ve come to the right place.

In this article, we’ll walk you through the various reasons why buying a house or a flat may be better, including all the important factors you should consider. If you’re a landlord, we’ve got some tips for you too, so keep reading.

Benefits of buying

While renting may be better for some, if you’ve been on the fence about buying your next (or first) property, here are some benefits of buying:

1. It’s a great investment opportunity. Over longer periods of time, house values have increased – even during slow growth periods. Since the 1980s, you’ll find that the value of UK homes has gone up by 1,392%.*
2. Buying offers you a level of security and independence without being reliant on a third party’s decision, e.g. a landlord’s.
3. You get to design and decorate your home how you want to. With a house, depending on the location and age of the building, you may even be able to change the exterior and transform it into your dream home. Forget about having to ask your landlord for permission, and simply decorate or redecorate the entire property.

What to consider when choosing between a house or a flat

There are some obvious and some not-so-obvious points to consider when making your decision. As all of these choices will depend on your personal circumstances, there are no right or wrong answers and each person’s final choice will vary.

Let’s dive in.

Budget: Your budget will be the biggest determining factor that helps you decide whether a flat or a house will be more suitable. As of January 2024, the average house price in the UK is £281,913; a detached house costs £438,088 and a flat or maisonette costs, on average, £228,811.*

At this point, you may also want to consider whether you want to buy a leasehold or freehold property. Both houses and flats can be leasehold, but you’ll find that most flats are leasehold properties. To understand more about the difference between the two, read our article here.

Availability: The second-biggest factor determining what to buy will most likely be what’s available on the property market.

Maintenance: When it comes to maintenance, from structural issues to water and electricity, a flat may come out on top in terms of being more convenient, as many of these issues will be covered by the building’s maintenance. On the flip side, you might find that the ground rent and services charges that come with owning a flat may mean that you have higher monthly costs.

If you buy a house, your monthly costs may be lower, but your overall costs of maintenance will be higher, as it’s only you who needs to foot the bill for any repairs.

Lifestyle and location: What type of property would suit your lifestyle better? Consider your social life, whether you have pets and your time of life, e.g. whether you’re starting a family or close to retirement.

Also think about the property’s location. Do you want to live close to your place of work, close to family, or be close to certain amenities? All of these, and more, will help you decide whether a property or home will be more suitable to you and your lifestyle.

Must-haves: Is there anything that you couldn’t live without – a garden, balcony, parking space, easy-access to transport or green spaces? Make a list of the features and amenities you wouldn’t want to live without or, at least, have in your vicinity.

Forever home: Is this your first property, and are you stepping onto the property ladder? Or are you buying your next property, which you want to settle down in. Often, but not always, people will buy their first home with the intention of selling it later on to buy a larger home.

Consider your level of commitment to this property. Would a flat or a house be more suitable? How long do you intend on living there for?

Price growth: Depending on whether you’re planning on buying your forever home or are planning to move and buy a new place in a few years time, price growth may be an important and deciding factor.

Flats tend to be cheaper than houses and can offer better value for money, though this may not be the case everywhere. For example, a flat in London in a central location may be more expensive than a house in the countryside. Flats also tend to sell more quickly, as there tends to be more demand for them – whether from landlords or first-time buyers.

Are houses or flats better buy-to-let investments?

As a landlord, you may be most interested in the profitability of a flat or house. As with other buyers, your budget calculations, including maintenance costs, mortgages, availability and price growth will influence your decision in understanding what buy-to-let would be most suitable. In addition, you will need to research tenant demand and the potential rental valuation of a property.

Although there are always exceptions to the rule, a buy-to-let flat can involve less upfront investment and often proves to be an attractive rental property for students and young professionals, as well as anyone looking to downsize. Depending on the location and size of the flat, it may however mean that there may be more frequent changes in tenancy, which can be both a pro and con of a buy-to-let flat. Buy-to-let houses may be more attractive to families with children, but can also make for great share houses (although there are additional regulations and potential costs for the latter), couples or older single renters, depending on size. As a rule of thumb, houses tend to attract longer-term renters, which can offer you, the landlord, greater confidence in terms of consistent returns.

As there are many variables to take into account when investing in a buy-to-let, why not talk to the lettings experts and find out how much you could be letting your property out for? Book a rental valuation today.

Whatever your choice, remember that everyone’s needs and demands from their property will vary; and so, whether you choose to buy a house or a flat will mostly come down to affordability and availability.